Who's wrong?? Making a right turn

There are some places where the turn lanes aren't marked until after you are committed to the wrong lane. Maybe he got in the right, thinking the left is left turn only, right is right turn only. At that point, what do you do? Make a turn that you physically can't make, or use both lanes finishing the turn?

 

In turns like that I will either wait and sit back till I have enough room to make the turn. I never trust 4 wheelers to do the right thing. They are like impatient little 4yr olds.

How ever.. if I get to an intersection like that by myself with no other vehicles.. I will set it up to where I am blocking both lanes.. leaving the tail end of my trailer in the right lane preventing anyone from taking the inside lane.. with my tractor in the left so I can own the turn. This always upsets people like that 4wheeler honking. But its much safer for everyone involved and they will get over it.

Hurst

 

I want option C on the ballot. C for Both

 

Wow, some of these comments...

The truck made a horrible turn and was in the wrong for not waiting. However, he was in the correct lane, you ALWAYS should take the farthest right lane so you can keep traffic on your sight side since there are idiots who don't know trucks make wide turns and will drive under you in the turn. If they are on your right, you are far less likely to see them and stop. He should have, however, waited for traffic to clear and/or taken the left lane just before stopping prior to the turn so that he has both lanes.

No matter what, he needed all lanes to turn, so whoever said he should stay in his lane at all times, you must not drive a truck, and you are the exact reason the turn was made this way. You would have tried to pass on the inside thinking he should hold his lane and you would have been ran over by the trailer.

 

The truck driver isn't "at fault" per se, because if there is space to extend around the corner from that lane (and it's not just a straight 90 degree turn with a curb) then that would avoid going into oncoming traffic from the left lane (that intersection is set up poorly).

It's really hard to say without all the information about the turn. Because if the driver did the right turn from the left lane, he would have crossed over into the right lane.

It was a lazy turn without properly controlling traffic. Nothing happened, so it's all good.

 

I have been told two different ways to make this type of turn. One is to stay in the outside lane, which I prefer. The other is to use the right lane and cut the outside lane off by going straight and only turning to the right after you have safely occupied the outside lane with the tractor. The truck driver could have used the second approach to minimize what happened, instead he changed horses mid stream.

Another observation is that the signs for the right turn lanes were on the left side, which would be very easy to miss by a driver scanning the right side for set up indicators.

The number one thing that the truck driver should have done differently is, slow down. By slowing down he would have had more time to evaluate the situation and set up better. Even a poor set up could have been rectified more safely if he slowed down during the turn and let others get around or stop and wait.

 

No harm, no foul?

 

If that truck was stopped by a cop or resulted in accident, the truck is at fault for failure to stay in his lane.

The OP asked who was in the wrong.

Everything else are techniques to maneuver that intersection.

On my first observation I thought the 4 wheeler was at fault until I took a second look and saw how that intersection was a double right from both lanes. I can see how this confuses driver's as we don't see that too often. I can see myself doing something like that where if I missed that sign the layout would make me think left lane left turn and right for right. Could be the truck driver wasn't familiar with that lay out. However, still his responsibility.

 

Driver should have been in the outer lane. However, a defensive car driver in that situation should have realized that the trucker messed up on his lane choice and held back to give the truck some space, just in case. Its really too bad they don't teach this stuff to the average car driver.

 

Trucker in the wrong... When there are 2 lanes turning the same direction you have to take the farthest one. In this case huging the left side.

If 2 lanes a turning right,you take le left one. 2 lanes left, you take the right one. Simply to avoid situations like that. By taking the left line he could see the car behind him trying to sneak in.